In a sports competition, it is often necessary to use several devices to detect and store the measured time of a race, in order to ensure the serviceability of the measuring system. These devices must also ensure good measurement accuracy and measurement security to be able to form an automated measuring system. The devices used in this type of measuring system are, for example, contact strips, cameras, photoelectric cells and transponders.
It should also be noted that if the time difference between athletes is less than the accuracy of the transponders used, a manual checking operation must also be used. The conventional measuring system cannot therefore be entirely automated, which is a drawback.
An electrical contact, arranged on the finish line, has often been used to measure time in track cycling races. This electrical contact is closed by the bicycle crossing the finish line, which enables the intermediate time or finish time of each cyclist to be determined. A manual checking operation must also be provided, since no information relating to each cyclist is transmitted each time the finish line is crossed. Moreover, this type of electrical contact may produce electrostatic discharges which are liable to be strongly felt by each cyclist as he crosses the finish line. This is therefore a drawback of this type of non-automated measuring system.